Parents of new reception starters: you do not have to start your child part-time or later in the term, no matter what the school says

[The3]

If your child is starting in reception at a state school, they are entitled to full-time education from the beginning of the Autumn term.

You can choose to send them part-time before they reach compulsory school age, but the school cannot insist that you do. Many schools present parents with transition arrangements which may be a later start, weeks of alternating mornings and afternoons, or gradual attendance building up to half term. Schools tend not to inform parents that these are optional, leaving lots of working families in the lurch when it comes to children who’ve left full-time nursery or other childcare, and plenty of people take unpaid leave or use up large chunks of their annual leave allowance dealing with the consequences of part-time or late starts.

If this is the case, for you, you can insist that your child begins school full time from day one. Your child has a right to this, if they are at a state school, and there is some very clear guidance from the Office of the Schools’ Adjudicator to explain this.

I’m posting this as my dc’s school had a six-week transition period, which would have meant I had to take all of my annual leave allowance to cover it, as I’d be able to attend work for less than an hour a day. I insisted on my dc’s right to full-time education, and it was fine, and many other parents sent their children in over the next few days, so more than half were full-time way before the end of the school’s transition period. Dc thrived at school, and transition from full-time nursery to full-time school was pretty straightforward all-in-all.

We had a week pt transition which was plenty. Weeks of dribs and drabs of childcare and not actually getting into the proper school routine just sounds unsettling.

I don't think we need to be shy about admitting school is part of people's childcare plan. The benefits system expects parents to be working once their kids are at school doesn't it?

So glad ours didn't do this, they just started them full-time over 3 days. So the youngest 1/3 of the class started on the first day of term, middle 1/3 on the next day, and then the oldest 1/3 on the 3rd day and then that was it.

Yes, you march straight into that school and demand your rights. It's not like you want to build a relationship over the next seven years.

I'm not marching round anywhere. I've simply and calmly requested that DD2 starts full time in September, citing their legal obligation as I don't want this dragging out and feel its best to make my position clear.

I already have a good relationship with the school as DD1 is there. Haven't complained about a single thing till now so I'm sure we'll be fine.

No marching or fall-outs required, a simple email informing the school that DC will be FT immediately will suffice

I never march anywhere. I pootle

6 weeks of mornings only?!?! No way would I manage that. My work would just say no even I had enough annual leave. Our school does a staggered start and that's it. I requested my child started on the first day of term and explained our circumstances and that has been accommodated.

My DC's school does full-time from the start, for everyone - they say they've found it works best this way. And thank god, because I'm a FT working LP with no family nearby and an Ex who lives thousands of miles away. I cannot do weeks of part-time reception.

And I teach, so there's no such thing as annual leave. I could possibly take parental leave, but I can't take the loss of pay and anyway, I have my own classes who I vitally need to teach in the first few crucial weeks of term.

Hmmmm I was not aware of this!
Would be worried my daughter would be the only one there in the afternoon though!

I wasn’t a working parent when DD started Reception so could have managed 6 weeks of half days without organising leave, childcare etc however I would have been shocked if her school had done this - I may not have been working but it’s obvious this is going to be difficult for a lot of parents to manage plus I’m not sure a one size fits all approach works. Some children would have no problem going full time from day one whereas others may have struggled.

My DDs school had a good balance I think - the first two days were half days with the class split in two - it gave the teachers a chance to know the children without there being so many and it let the children get use to their new environment without too many others about. I think the 2nd day the whole class actually had lunch together in the classroom before the morning half left which I thought was a lovely idea.

The school were also clear from the new intake meeting before the summer that if any were struggling with going full time straightaway/finding it overwhelming then they were happy to look at those children being part time initially if that would help them.

If you need to quote the law at your school, it’s the School Admissions Code 2014

Link to document:

assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/389388/School_Admissions_Code_2014_-_19_Dec.pdf

Relevant section (page 24)

2.16 Admission authorities must provide for the admission of all children in the September following their fourth birthday. The authority must make it clear in their arrangements that, where they have offered a child a place at a school:
a) that child is entitled to a full-time place in the September following their fourth birthday;
b) the child’s parents can defer the date their child is admitted to the school until later in the school year but not beyond the point at which they reach compulsory school age and not beyond the beginning of the final term of the school year for which it was made; and
c) where the parents wish, children may attend part-time until later in the school year but not beyond the point at which they reach compulsory school age.

The 2014 Annual Report of the Office of the Schools’ Adjudicator clarified the wording of section 2.16 of the Admissions Code, and removed ambiguity.

Link to document:

dera.ioe.ac.uk/21835/1/OSA_Annual_Report_2014.pdf

Relevant section:

57. Objections concerning starting school for the first time have been made again this year. Some are because a school refuses to provide a full-time reception place from the September after the child’s fourth birthday and others are from parents who wish their child to delay entry to the reception class for a full year.
58. The Code at paragraph 2.16 makes clear that it is for the parents to decide whether their child attends school prior to reaching compulsory school age and if so, whether attendance is full or part-time. Schools must make full-time provision available from the beginning of the autumn term of the school year in which the child reaches compulsory school age, the September following the child’s fourth birthday. Some schools provide an induction period such that it appears schools dictate the sessions for which children can and cannot attend school, including setting requirements that contravene a parent’s right to full or part-time or deferred schooling contrary to the requirements of the Code.

I don't think prolonged transitions are good and lots of schools don't do them, but I'm not sure I'd insist a school had my child from day 1 if the reception teachers were doing home visits that first week as I'd worry they'd be rattling around on tgeir own with a mix of TAs and it could feel a bit weird

My DC's school do home visits before the summer hols. When the children start in sept they're meant to do mornings or afternoons so my DD won't be alone. I've also mentioned this to some other mums and I know at least one other is definitely going to ask for full time too.

With Dgs, currently in reception, he had a home visit in early July from his new teacher and the nursery teacher and in mid- July a morning at the school - his dm was with him at first then the parents left the dc and went to a meeting with the headteacher.
He started full-time school at 8.45am on Monday 4th September along with the rest of his class. I am only aware of 1 child having difficulties settling in (still crying each morning well into Spring term) and 2 children who were tired out at first and occasionally needed a nap.
At the school where dgs attended nursery they had staggered start dates over the first 2 weeks and also part-time attendance which continued into the 3rd and 4th weeks. A lot of the dc struggled to settle, several of the parents said their dc were confused by being at school some mornings or afternoons and not others and sometimes their friends being in school and othertimes not being there (a dc's birthday party at the local softplay turned into a group parental rant). None of the parents mentioned any difficulties about childcare arrangements, they just talked about how stressed the dc were and as a majority of families had both parents working/working single parents, I'm sure at least some of them were having to juggle annual leave etc).

Also thank you OP for this information and also thanks to PPs who posted links to the legislation, I know a few people who will appreciate knowing about this.

Ours has no-one in week 1 (home visits) and everyone does just mornings week 2.. so if I insisted she went full time, she could be the only one in afternoons. That would very much not help her settle!

DH does shifts and is using leave to cover bits we are both working.. bit irritating as his leave could be used in much nicer ways for us all together. I'm a teacher so can't take any.

In my sons school if you insist on FT from day one the child would probably get put in a class with older children for the first week at least as reception staff wont be there. Or just bumped around whatever staff are free.

I would have a conversation with the school about the problems you have around childcare and come to a compromise of some sort rather than contacting them quoting your legal rights.

My DS2 is starting reception this September, and the school seem to have lengthened their settling arrangements since DS1 started four years ago. DS2 will have a home visit and a play visit to the classroom sometime in the first seven days of term, and then the following week he will "start" school some time in the week - but school will finish at 11.30 every day that week. He doesn't start going for full days until 24 September. He is finishing nursery a month earlier... We are away for a week, and then it doesn't seem worth putting him back into nursery as DS1 will be off for a couple of days at the start of September, and then we would have to pay for the week we are away anyway. Plus it seems nice for him to have a bit of a break between nursery and school. But it does mean DH and I have to find four whole weeks off, one of which we are both off for anyway. Luckily my boss has given me permission to take three weeks of annual leave in one block, and then DH will take the last week. It does mean DS1 will be in holiday club more over the holidays than I would like, as I am using lots of my annual leave up in September. Plus as an early September birthday, DS2 will have turned 5 even before he has his home visit, and still be a week or two off starting school. It does all seem like overkill, especially as he has been doing two long days per week at nursery for four years. I wouldn't want to ask the school to let him start full time from day 1 though. I don't think he would much like being one of only one or two kids hanging round all day when the others have gone home.

This is excellent - thank you OP.

I am facing the same issue and actually think that the prolonged settling period will be much more upsetting for my DC than starting properly from day one.

I am going to email the school tomorrow and we have a half day there on Tuesday so will discuss as well.

I will come back to update on how it has gone down.

Sort of related as well - what are the schools doing with the free school lunches during the settling in periods? My daughters school is a 9-12 day without lunch... I thought all children were entitled?

Oh and just to add my daughters school is also charging a retainer for the after school sessions we need but she is not able to attend - because she is half days for three weeks...

It depends on the child - not all are ready (and some are almost a year younger than others) to launch into full days.

Nursery there is much more free choice and a lot less expectation for carpet sessions and concentrating

Ger real .... no reception teacher is going to expect any of the children to be sitting in the carpet and following a whole host of rules from day one.

They play and gently intercepted into the sessions.

Gosh I feel old and my youngest is only 16!
Staggered start meant 5th birthday Sept to March start full time school 1st day of term in September, April to July birthdays started full time 1st day of term in January

August not July

The rules quoted say the child is entitled to a full time place 'in the September following their 4th birthday'. Where does it say this entitlement starts on the first day of term? Ok, six weeks is unnecessary but half days for a week then staying for lunch for a week works well for most children before going full time. School is nothing like nursery! Lots of concentration needed as lots to take in. Not only work, but routines and different places to go at different times - assembly, playground, dining hall, library etc. Lots of lining up! No wonder they're tired!